| Country: | Rhodesia |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Previous Election: | 1970 Rhodesian general election |
| Previous Year: | 1970 |
| Next Election: | 1977 Rhodesian general election |
| Next Year: | 1977 |
| Seats For Election: | All 66 seats in the House of Assembly |
| Majority Seats: | 34 |
| Election Date: | 30 July 1974 |
| Image1: | Ian Smith 1975.jpg |
| Leader1: | Ian Smith |
| Party1: | Rhodesian Front |
| Leaders Seat1: | Umzingwane |
| Last Election1: | 50 |
| Seats1: | 50 |
| Seat Change1: | – |
| Popular Vote1: | 55,597 |
| Percentage1: | 77.98% (European) |
| Swing1: | 0.2pp |
| Leader2: | – |
| Party2: | ANC Independents |
| Last Election2: | – |
| Seats2: | 6 |
| Seat Change2: | New |
| Popular Vote2: | 1,590 |
| Percentage2: | 53.36% (African) |
| Swing2: | New |
| Prime Minister | |
| Before Election: | Ian Smith |
| After Election: | Ian Smith |
| Before Party: | Rhodesian Front |
| After Party: | Rhodesian Front |
General elections were held in Rhodesia on 30 July 1974. They saw the Rhodesian Front of Ian Smith re-elected, once more winning every one of the 50 seats elected by white voters.[1] [2] [3]
Since the previous election in 1970, the main African nationalist groups had changed their strategy and gone into exile in Zambia (and to a lesser extent Mozambique and Botswana), launching a war to overthrow white minority rule by force. The main African groups, the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU) and the Front for the Liberation of Zimbabwe (FROLIZI), formed the African National Council under Bishop Abel Muzorewa to act as a collective political leadership and undertake any negotiations with the Rhodesian government.
In June 1974, the African National Council rejected settlement proposals which had come out of discussions between itself and the Rhodesian government. As the Rhodesian Parliament was into its fifth year, a general election became a real prospect. Timothy Gibbs of the Rhodesia Party announced on 9 June 1974 that he expected a September election, and on 19 June, Prime Minister Ian Smith announced that there would be an election imminently (he did not name the date). He also announced round table talks with Africans, including the Council of Chiefs. These talks were rejected by the African National Council as a waste of time.
The Rhodesia Party, a white opposition party, had been formed by ex-Rhodesian Front MP Allan Savory in 1972. They were a moderate group which advocated more moves towards including the African population in internal politics. Early in June 1974, Savory made a speech at Hartley in which he was reported as saying that if he had been a black Rhodesian, he would be a terrorist. The uproar was such that Savory was forced from the leadership (replaced by Gibbs) and resigned from the party on 16 June. Despite the turmoil, the Rhodesia Party managed to nominate candidates in 40 out of the 50 seats.
There were also several Independent candidates including six right-wingers sponsored by the Rhodesian Group. The multi-racial Centre Party, which had provided the main opposition at the previous election, nominated a single candidate (who was from an Indian background). When nominations closed on 7 July, two seats (including that of Ian Smith) were elected unopposed. A victory by the Rhodesian Front was almost inevitable, although six seats were regarded as marginal.
The most marginal seat was clearly Salisbury City, where a right-wing Rhodesian Front candidate Ted Sutton-Pryce faced Dr Ahrn Palley, an Independent ex-member of the House of Assembly who had been a lone white opponent of UDI. In the 1970 election, the Rhodesian Front had defeated a mixed-race Independent candidate by only 40 votes, with a Centre Party candidate taking 157. Allan Savory, despite his departure from the Rhodesia Party, fought in Highlands North in the Salisbury suburbs as an Independent.
The Rhodesian Front responded to the challenge from the Rhodesia Party by attacking it for holding secret negotiations with the African National Council behind the backs of the Rhodesia government with the intent of undermining them. Ian Smith identified the Rhodesia Party with the 'liberal establishment' of Rhodesia, which had been responsible for the 1962 constitution and the inadequate arrangements of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland in 1953.
The electorate of Rhodesia returned 66 members of the House of Assembly of Rhodesia, in three different classes of seat:
Both European and African rolls had a range of property qualifications. No change to boundaries or the qualification of voters was made compared to the 1970 election.
| Constituency Electorate and turnout | Candidate | Party | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ARUNDEL 2,393 (93.1%) | Archibald Wilson | RF | 1,505 | 67.5 |
| Nicholas John McNally | RP | 723 | 32.5 | |
| AVONDALE 1,983 (90.9%) | † Colin Eric Barlow | RF | 1,397 | 77.5 |
| Myfanwy Eleanor Bridget Nolan van Hoffen | RP | 405 | 22.5 | |
| BELLEVUE 2,272 (92.7%) | † Wallace Evelyn Stuttaford | RF | 1,735 | 82.3 |
| Robert Duncan Bothwell Fleming | RP | 372 | 17.7 | |
| BELVEDERE 1,862 (91.6%) | † Dennis Divaris | RF | 1,155 | 67.7 |
| Ralph Albert Newmarch | RP | 456 | 26.7 | |
| John Fraser Caladine Whiting | Ind RG | 69 | 4.0 | |
| Ratilal Damodar Devchand | CP | 25 | 1.5 | |
| BORROWDALE 2,672 (91.2%) | † Douglas Hamilton Ritchie | RF | 1,596 | 65.5 |
| Peter Anthony Bridger | RP | 835 | 34.3 | |
| Wendy Ann Truen | Ind | 6 | 0.2 | |
| BRAESIDE 1,570 (89.0%) | Richard Cartwright | RF | 1,269 | 90.8 |
| David Murray | Ind RG | 128 | 9.2 | |
| BULAWAYO CENTRAL 1,252 (90.7%) | Edward Stanley White | RF | 722 | 63.6 |
| Timothy Durant Gibbs | RP | 414 | 36.4 | |
| BULAWAYO DISTRICT 1,613 (88.9%) | † Alexander Moseley | RF | 1,112 | 77.5 |
| Michael Theodore Hayes Auret | RP | 322 | 22.5 | |
| BULAWAYO EAST 2,080 (91.4%) | † Elias Broomberg | RF | 1,274 | 67.0 |
| Jurick Goldwasser | RP | 628 | 33.0 | |
| BULAWAYO NORTH 1,725 (83.1%) | Denis Walker | RF | 1,339 | 93.4 |
| Austen Sales Perkins | Ind | 94 | 6.6 | |
| BULAWAYO SOUTH 1,071 (87.1%) | Ian Peter Rees-Davies | RF | 697 | 74.7 |
| Ronald Edward Clark | RP | 236 | 25.3 | |
| CHARTER 1,417 (87.6%) | † Rowan Cronjé | RF | 1,147 | 92.4 |
| Neil Diarmid Campbell Housman Herbert Wilson | Ind RG | 94 | 7.6 | |
| EASTERN 1,312 (91.7%) | John Hamilton Wright | RF | 952 | 79.1 |
| Obe Veldman | RP | 251 | 20.9 | |
| GATOOMA 1,410 (92.3%) | † Albert Gannaway Mells | RF | 1,098 | 84.3 |
| Raymond Thomas Mossop | RP | 203 | 15.7 | |
| GREENDALE 2,050 (92.6%) | † Mark Partridge | RF | 1,332 | 70.2 |
| Norman James Hendry | RP | 373 | 19.7 | |
| Ernest Roy Wright | Ind RG | 193 | 10.2 | |
| GWEBI 1,328 (89.7%) | † Thomas Ian Fraser Sandeman | RF | 939 | 78.8 |
| James Strathearn Brown | RP | 252 | 21.2 | |
| GWELO 1,257 (91.6%) | † Roger Hawkins | RF | 971 | 84.4 |
| Gordon Hamilton Peters | RP | 180 | 15.6 | |
| HARTLEY 2,135 (91.9%) | † P. K. van der Byl | RF | 1,668 | 85.0 |
| James McClure Sinclair | RP | 295 | 15.0 | |
| HATFIELD 1,768 (90.8%) | Frederick Roy Simmonds | RF | 1,231 | 76.7 |
| William John Harper | RP | 288 | 17.9 | |
| Jack Peche | Ind | 80 | 5.0 | |
| Christoph William Utley | Ind | 6 | 0.4 | |
| HIGHLANDS NORTH 1,779 (92.4%) | Fergus Craig Blackie | RF | 931 | 56.7 |
| † Clifford Allan Redin Savory | Ind | 394 | 24.0 | |
| Philip Robert James Grinham | RP | 230 | 14.0 | |
| Diana Mitchell | Ind | 88 | 5.3 | |
| HIGHLANDS SOUTH 1,886 (91.4%) | † Richard Hope Hall | RF | 1,299 | 75.3 |
| Marcus Patrick Doyle | RP | 425 | 24.7 | |
| HILLCREST 1,727 (93.1%) | † John Arthur Newington | RF | 1,390 | 86.4 |
| Peter Henry Corbishley | RP | 218 | 13.6 | |
| HILLSIDE 1,834 (93.3%) | † Dennis Fawcett Phillips | RF | 1,143 | 66.8 |
| Ewen Cardno Greenfield | RP | 569 | 33.2 | |
| JAMESON 1,700 (85.2%) | † John Peter Broberg Nilson | RF | 1,264 | 87.2 |
| Raymond Stallwood | Ind | 185 | 12.8 | |
| KAROI 1,241 (85.0%) | Jan Jacobus Buitendag | RF | 842 | 79.8 |
| Peter William Richards | RP | 213 | 20.2 | |
| MABELREIGN 1,823 (89.6%) | John Cornelius Gleig | RF | 1,171 | 71.7 |
| Ian George Anderson | RP | 462 | 28.3 | |
| MARANDELLAS 1,446 (91.4%) | † David Colville Smith | RF | 1,046 | 79.1 |
| Alfred John Harrison | RP | 276 | 20.9 | |
| MARLBOROUGH 2,608 (72.3%) | † William Michie Irvine | RF | 1,479 | 78.5 |
| Nigel Graham-Smith | RP | 406 | 21.5 | |
| MATOBO 1,673 (88.0%) | Robert Henry Warren McGee | RF | 1,218 | 82.7 |
| Marshall P. Baron | Ind | 255 | 17.3 | |
| MAZOE 1,589 (92.5%) | † George Rollo Hayman | RF | 1,241 | 84.4 |
| Henry John Wells | RP | 229 | 15.6 | |
| MIDLANDS 1,258 (92.4%) | Henry Swan Elsworth | RF | 1,009 | 86.8 |
| William Septimus Beckett | RP | 154 | 13.2 | |
| MILTON PARK 1,664 (91.2%) | John Alfred Landau | RF | 1,135 | 74.8 |
| Niels Erik Oldenburg | RP | 382 | 25.2 | |
| MOUNT PLEASANT 1,882 (90.5%) | Jonas Christian Andersen | RF | 1,045 | 61.3 |
| Muriel Ena Rosin | RP | 658 | 38.7 | |
| MTOKO 1,718 (91.7%) | † Rodney Guy Swayne Simmonds | RF | 1,070 | 67.9 |
| Guy Kerry Webb | RP | 506 | 32.1 | |
| QUEENS PARK 1,530 | Arthur Denis Crook | RF | unopposed | |
| QUE QUE 1,632 (91.9%) | † Jacobus Johannes Burger | RF | 1,201 | 80.1 |
| Louis Henry Bennett | RP | 299 | 19.9 | |
| RAYLTON 1,844 (90.3%) | † Patrick Francis Shields | RF | 1,223 | 73.5 |
| James Kinley | RP | 442 | 26.5 | |
| RUSAPE 1,295 (95.2%) | † Johannes Jacobus Lodewickus de Kock | RF | 1,040 | 84.3 |
| Raymond Boxwell Holcroft | RP | 193 | 15.7 | |
| SALISBURY CENTRAL 1,250 (88.2%) | Hilary Squires | RF | 855 | 77.5 |
| Lance Halford Reynolds | RP | 216 | 19.6 | |
| Patrick Gerard Keane | Ind | 32 | 2.9 | |
| SALISBURY CITY 1,309 (89.3%) | † Edward Aylett Sutton-Pryce | RF | 586 | 50.1 |
| Ahrn Palley | Ind | 583 | 49.9 | |
| SALISBURY NORTH 1,588 (91.1%) | † André Sothern Holland | RF | 1,103 | 76.2 |
| John Philip Gold Duncan | RP | 344 | 23.8 | |
| SELUKWE 1,682 (90.7%) | John Morris Lowenthal | RF | 1,249 | 81.9 |
| Trevor Foster Booth | RP | 187 | 12.3 | |
| James William Redmond | Ind RG | 89 | 5.8 | |
| SHABANI 1,266 (83.8%) | † Ian Birt Harper Dillon | RF | 944 | 89.0 |
| Geoffrey Jackson | RP | 117 | 11.0 | |
| SINOIA/UMWUKWES 1,531 (88.1%) | † Esmond Meryl Micklem | RF | 1,057 | 78.4 |
| Robert Arnold Anderson | RP | 292 | 21.6 | |
| UMTALI EAST 1,571 (91.2%) | † Bernard Horace Mussett | RF | 1,203 | 83.9 |
| John Grant | RP | 230 | 16.1 | |
| UMTALI WEST 1,437 (90.1%) | † John Christie | RF | 933 | 72.0 |
| Dr Johannes Martheus Wessels | RP | 362 | 28.0 | |
| UMZINGWANE 1,698 | † Ian Smith | RF | unopposed | |
| VICTORIA 2,071 (89.5%) | † Gordon Richard Olds | RF | 1,530 | 82.6 |
| Peter Southerton Hingeston | RP | 323 | 17.4 | |
| WANKIE 1,432 (86.6%) | † Reginald Edward Dennis Cowper | RF | 1,068 | 86.1 |
| Mike Huckle | RP | 172 | 13.9 | |
| WATERFALLS 1,531 (87.9%) | † Arthur Philip Smith | RF | 1,183 | 87.9 |
| Norman Henry | Ind RG | 163 | 12.1 |
| Constituency Electorate and turnout | Candidate | Party | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HARARE 1,118 (63.7%) | Godfrey Guwa Chidyausiku | Ind ANC | 424 | 59.6 |
| Isaac Hanzi Samuriwo | Ind | 145 | 20.4 | |
| † Edward Gabriel Watungwa | CP | 71 | 10.0 | |
| Lovemore Christopher Mbanga | Ind | 32 | 4.5 | |
| Ian George Garikayi Charambarara | Ind | 24 | 3.4 | |
| Hativakwane Lewis Mundawarara | Ind | 10 | 1.4 | |
| Mark Taurai Muchabaiwa | NSF | 6 | 0.8 | |
| INSUKAMINI 481 (64.7%) | John Zachary Maposa | Ind ANC | 188 | 60.5 |
| Phillip Elijah Chigogo | Ind | 71 | 22.8 | |
| Judah John Ntini | Ind | 30 | 9.6 | |
| † Lewis Alban Ndhlovu | CP | 15 | 4.8 | |
| Joseph Bunu Ngulube | APP | 7 | 2.3 | |
| KUNYASI 1,543 | Thomas Tavagwisa Zawairi | Ind ANC | unopposed | |
| MABVAZUKA 946 (57.8%) | Elijah Smile Gende Magavan Nyandoro | Ind ANC | 253 | 46.3 |
| Davidson Murambiwa Jahwi | Ind | 123 | 22.5 | |
| Moses Mvenge | Ind | 63 | 11.5 | |
| † Lazarus Masenda | CP | 52 | 9.5 | |
| Ambrose Charles Majongwe | APP | 31 | 5.7 | |
| Solomon Gomba Zisengwe | Ind | 25 | 4.6 | |
| MATOJENI 905 (51.2%) | † Lot Enock Dewa | Ind ANC | 452 | 97.6 |
| Samson Chibi | APP | 11 | 2.4 | |
| MPOPOMA 394 (52.5%) | † Lwazi Joel Mahlangu | Ind | 149 | 72.0 |
| Theophilus Mali Zondo | Ind | 58 | 28.0 | |
| NEMAKONDE 867 (37.9%) | † Ronald T.D. Sadomba | Ind ANC | 273 | 83.0 |
| Stephen Amos Dzuka Chirenda | Ind | 51 | 15.5 | |
| Mulena Mwana Sherena Mundawarara | APP | 5 | 1.5 | |
| NTSHONALANGA 789 (52.1%) | † Micah Mahamba Bhebe | CP | 339 | 82.5 |
| Ephraim Jiho Mhlanga | Ind | 72 | 17.5 |
Josia Hove died on 14 June 1976. At the byelection on 5 August 1976, Adam Hove was elected to replace him; Benjamin Panga Mbuisa and Twyman Mafohla Sibanda were unsuccessful candidates.
The Land Tenure Amendment Bill of 1977 was highly controversial among Rhodesian Front MPs who objected to the opening of some areas previously designated for Europeans to African ownership. In a vote on 4 March 1977, twelve Rhodesian Front MPs voted against the Bill on a three line whip. They were Reginald Cowper, Dennis Fawcett Phillips, Richard Hope Hall, Robert McGee, John Newington, Peter Nilson, Gordon Olds, Ian Sandeman, Rodney Simmonds and Ted Sutton-Pryce. The Rhodesian press quickly nicknamed them The Dirty Dozen. In July 1977 these MPs formed the right-wing Rhodesian Action Party; this action precipitated the 1977 election as it deprived the government of the needed two-thirds majority to amend the constitution.